Arts & Ideas

Do we underappreciate comic writing ? It’s 400 years since the birth of France’s great satirical playwright, Jean-Baptiste Pocquelin, better known by his pen-name Molière. Stendhal described him as “the great painter of man as he is” and his works have continued to be translated and performed on both the French and British stage with recent adaptations by Christopher Hampton, Anil Gupta and the Scottish poet and playwright, Liz Lochhead. She joins Anne McElvoy to help consider what we make of Molière now and how well his plays work in translation, alongside Clare Finburgh-Delijani, Professor of European Theatre at Goldsmiths, University of London and Suzanne Jones, a Junior Research Fellow in French at St Anne’s College Oxford. Their discussion looks at various adaptations of Tartuffe, Moliere’s play translated as The Hypocrite or The Imposter, which was first performed in 1664.Listen out for a Words and Music episode which picks out key speeches from plays including The Miser, the Imaginary Invalid, The School for Wives and the Misanthrope. You can hear that on BBC Radio 3 at 5.30pm Sunday 16th - followed by a new adaptation of The Miser scripted by Barunka O’Shaughnessy. You can also find out about the court music of Lully in Composer of the Week and there's a special edition of Radio 3's Early Music Show.Producer: Ruth Watts

The conventional view of Neville Chamberlain's dealings with Hitler at the 1938 Munich Conference, paints him as weak and gullible - an appeaser. But why did appeasement become such a dirty word when negotiation and accommodation are such valuable diplomatic tools? Rana Mitter is joined by historian Tim Bouverie, screenwriter Alex von Tunzelmann and journalist Juliet Samuel to reassess Chamberlain's reputation and to examine how the long shadow of Munich still affects the actions of politicians in the 21st century.Tim Bouverie is the author of Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War. Alex von Tunzelmann wrote the screenplay for Jonathan Teplitzky's 2017 film Churchill. Juliet Samuel is a columnist who covers politics, economics, foreign policy and technology for The Telegraph.There's a new film adaptation of Robert Harris's best-selling novel Munich. Munich: The Edge of War is on selected release in cinemas from 7th January and available on Netflix from 21st January.Producer: Torquil MacLeodYou can find a playlist of programmes exploring War and Conflict on the Free Thinking website https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06kgbyb

From duels to hygiene and medical protection to the image of the gloved aristocrat whose hands aren’t coarsened by work: Shahidha Bari dons a pair of gloves as she finds out about tranks, fourchettes, lace, wool and glove making which is on The Heritage Craft Assosicaion's 'Red List' of Endangered crafts. The Glove maker Riina Oun creates high-fashion bespoke gloves. She has collaborated with designers such as Giles Deacon and Meadham Kirchhoff, and she also teaches the art of gloving. Technologist Tom Chatfield considers the glove as cutting edge technology, explains what haptic feedback does for us and why the hand is so important in helping us navigate virtual worlds. Anne Green's book 'Gloves: An Intimate History', has just been published, a cultural history written as disposable protective gloves took on a whole new resonance. And Rebecca Unsworth brings us stories from her work with Birmingham Museums as she considers the smells of gloves and their role as the ultimate 17th century gift.Producer: Jessica TreenYou might be interested in other conversations about fashion in the Free Thinking archives: Fashion stories in Museums hears from V&A fashion curator Claire Wilcox, Veronica Isaac and Cassandra Davies Strodder https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s2by Fashion, Art and the Body brings together Ekow Eshun, Charlie Porter and Olivia Laing https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000wc78 Jade Halbert discusses recycling of fashion in this episode https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00061m1 The Politics of Fashion and Drag hears from Scrumbly Koldewyn, visits the Vauxhall Tavern and talks to Jenny Gilbert https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09zcjch

Matthew Sweet explores Belmondo's central role in the revolutionary cinema of 1960s France and how he became one of the most celebrated screen actors of his generation with Ginette Vincendeau, Lucy Bolton and Phuong Le.Ginette Vincendeau is Professor of Film Studies at King's College London. Lucy Bolton is Reader in Film Studies at Queen Mary University of London. Phuong Le is a film critic based in Paris.A BFI season focused on the films of Francois Truffaut runs across January and February and includes a BFI Player collection and a batch of Blu-rays being released in Spring 2022 and partner seasons at cinemas around the UK including Edinburgh Filmhouse and Ciné Lumière.Producer: Torquil MacLeod

90% are unknown still but the species which have been studied have given us penicillin, ways of breaking down plastics, food and bio fuels but they can also be dangerous. Neither animal nor vegetable, they are both amongst us and within us, shaping our lives in ways it is difficult to imagine. Merlin Sheldrake's book about fungi, Entangled Life, has won the Royal Society Science book of the year and the Wainwright Conservation prize so here's Matthew Sweet with him and others discussing the amazing life of mushrooms.Francesca Gavin curated an exhibition Mushrooms: The Art, Design and Future of the Fungi, which ran at Somerset House in London and is now available to view as an online tour. It features the work of 40 artists, musicians and designers from Cy Twombly to Beatrix Potter, John Cage to Hannah Collins. Sam Gandy is an ecologist, writer and researcher who has collaborated with the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College. https://www.imperial.ac.uk/psychedelic-research-centre/ Begoña Aguirre-Hudson is Curator and Mycologist at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She helps look after the Kew Fungarium - the largest collection of fungi in the world. https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/begona-aguirre-hudsonProducer: Alex Mansfield You can find other discussions in the Free Thinking archives about food https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08wn51y Cows, farming and our view of nature https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000n0g8 Humans, animals, ecologies: conversations with Anna Tsing and Joanna Bourke https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000sjmj

Sticking in stamps and killing animals were the main achievements of King George V - according to his biographer Harold Nicholson. Now Jane Ridley has written a new book about him subtitled "Never a Dull Moment" so can dullness be a virtue. Anne McElvoy chairs the discussion, which also looks at the history and image of Roundheads and Cavaliers with New Generation Thinker Tom Charlton and the appearance of dullness in political theory with Jonathan Floyd, Associate Professor at the University of Bristol. Plus Anne talks to Colm Tóibín, the winner of the David Cohen Prize for Literature - biennial British literary award given to acknowledge a whole career.Professor Jane Ridley's biography George V: Never a Dull Moment is out now.Producer: Ruth Watts

Helping start the Women's Liberation Movement in Britain is just one of the key moments in Sheila Rowbotham's life. This year she published Daring to Hope: My Life in the 1970s and she compares then and now talking to Rana Mitter. Also a discussion of early Buddhism and new research uncovered by Sarah Shaw and Kate Crosby.The Art of Listening: A Guide to the Early Teachings of Buddhism by Sarah Shaw is out nowEsoteric Theravada is a book Kate Crosby exploring the Southeast Asian meditation traditionSheila Rowbotham's Daring to Hope: My Life in the 1970s is out now. Her other books include Dreamers of a New Day: Women Who Invented the Twentieth Century; the biography Edward Carpenter: A Life of Liberty and Love and Rebel Crossings: New Women, Free Lovers and Radicals in Britain and the United StatesProducer: Luke MulhallOn the Free Thinking programme website you can find a playlist exploring religious belief featuring a range of interviewees including Giles Fraser, Francesca Stavrakopoulou, Yaa Gyasi, Shelina Janmohamed and Haemin Sunim. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03mwxlp

From unwrapping Egyptian mummies to her theories about witch trials and the influence of her 1921 book The Witch-Cult in Western Europe on Wicca beliefs: Margaret Murray's career comes under the spotlight as Matthew Sweet is joined by guests including New Generation Thinker Elsa Richardson and historian of witchcraft Ronald Hutton. Producer: Luke Mulhall You might also be interested in the Free Thinking discussions on Magic with Kate Laity, Chris Gosden, Jessica Gossling and John Tresch https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000kvssOn Witchcraft, Werewolves and Writing the Devil with Jenni Fagan. Salena Godden, Tabitha Stanmore and Daniel Ogden https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000r5hkEnchantment, Witches and Woodlands hearing from Marie Darrieussecq, Zoe Gilbert, Lisa Mullen and Dafydd Daniel https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0000qkl

James Graham’s play exploring the encounters between the American political commentators Gore Vidal and William F Buckley Jr, opens at the Young Vic in London this week. We also have Germaine Greer v Norman Mailer at New York's Town Hall, April 1971 which was filmed as a documentary Town Bloody Hall. More recent Presidential debates have become part of the British political landscape during our elections - and there's the weekly politics show Question Time with viewers now on zoom and twitter. Anne McElvoy and guests look at whether debating has changed?James Graham latest play is Best of EnemiesHelen Lewis is a broadcaster and staff writer for The Atlantic. Her latest book is Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights.Alex Massie is a columnist for The Times and The Sunday Times and is the Scotland Editor of The Spectator.Producer: Ruth WattsBest of Enemies is at the Young Vic in London until Jan 22nd 2022 with Charles Edwards as Gore Vidal, alongside David Harewood, as William F Buckley Jr. It is inspired by Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville's 2015 American documentary film Best of Enemies, available on https://dogwoof.com/bestofenemies Town Bloody Hall a documentary made by Chris Hegedus and DA Pennebaker is available from https://www.criterion.com/films/30213-town-bloody-hall James Graham's other dramas include Quiz, Labour of Love and Ink. You can hear him discussing Dramatising Democracy in a Free Thinking discussion with Michael Dobbs, Paula Milne, and Trudi-Ann Tierney https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04yb7k6 and his play which put Screaming Lord Sutch on stage https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06zq2jl

Migration, autism, young Colombians escaping violence, Yorkshire farming and children born of war in Uganda are the topics highlighted in the winners of this year’s AHRC Researcher in Film Awards. Naomi Paxton looks at the winning entries. The Best Animated Film of the Year winner Osbert Parker is a three-time BAFTA nominated director and an animation lecturer at the National Film and TV School. His winning film Timeline was produced in collaboration with the Migration Museum for an exhibition called Departures and Matthew Plowright from the museum joins him to talk to Naomi Paxton about condensing a history of migration into a ten minute animation built around the idea of lines connecting. https://www.migrationmuseum.org/ https://vimeo.com/496398115 The Best Doctoral or Early Career Film of the Year winner was Alex Widdowson’s animated film Drawing on Autism. This forms part of his practice-based doctoral work with the Autism through Cinema project at Queen Mary, University of London. He talks to Naomi Paxton and the ethics of making a film about other people’s experiences of autism. https://www.qmul.ac.uk/sllf/film-studies/research/autism-through-cinema/ You might also be interested in this Free Thinking conversation with novelist Michelle Gallen and Dr Bonnie Evans from QMUL about representations of autism https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000r3ly The Best Research Film of the Year was won by Birte Vogel for The Art of Peace, Medellín – a documentary exploring the impact of community-led arts initiatives that work with marginalised youth, and particularly young men, in Colombia who are at risk of becoming involved in ongoing violent conflict. Joining Naomi to talk about the film is Teresa Ó Brádaigh Bean, Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Manchester and part of The Art of Peace project team. https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/the-art-of-peace/home/about/research/ The Best Climate Emergency Film of the Year was given to Newland: New Vision for a Wilder Future which hears from a pair of farmers in York shire and focuses on the tensions between farming and conservation, looking at issues including public access, heritage, and sustainability. Suzie Cross is Artistic Director of the Land Lines Research Project at the University of Leeds – she made the film with Dave Lynch https://landlinesproject.wordpress.com/ You can find two Free Thinking conversations about the Land Lines project The episodes are called Nature Writing https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000ktf4 featuring Pippa Marland and Connecting with Nature https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000xthj hearing from Pippa Marland and Anita Roy about their anthology. The Inspiration Award winner was Dheeraj Akolkar. His film The Wound is Where the Light Enters was inspired by a docu-dance performance created by fifteen young people born of war rapes in Northern Uganda. Professor Sabine Lee from the University of Birmingham is part of a research network that explores the experiences of Children born of war https://www.chibow.org/ https://research.birmingham.ac.uk/en/publications/children-born-of-war-past-present-and-future You can find out more about the awards here https://ahrc.ukri.org/innovation/research-in-film-awards/ This New Thinking episode of the Arts and Ideas podcast was made in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council, part of UKRI You can find more episodes devoted to New Research in a playlist on BBC Radio 3’s Free Thinking programme website. Producer: Paula McFarlane